Solicitor censured after domestic s 38(1) conviction
A solicitor has been censured by the profession's Discipline Tribunal after being convicted and fined for a domestically aggravated contravention of s 38(1) of the Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2010, which covers threatening or abusive behaviour.
Benjamin Nephi Hann, of Hann & Co, Edinburgh was found guilty of professional misconduct in respect of his conduct which led to his conviction.
Mr Hann was fined £400 in court for repeatedly attending at his wife’s home uninvited, repeatedly loitering outside her home, leaving flowers for her, repeatedly sending her messages via text and social media, and repeatedly attending at places where he knew or suspected she would be present.
The tribunal said his conduct represented a serious and reprehensible departure from the standards of competent and reputable solicitors and called his integrity into question. While it conduct occurred in the context of a complicated relationship which had started in difficult circumstances and ended in a very turbulent fashion, Mr Hann had exercised very bad judgement in continuing to contact his wife. Society today rightly viewed domestic incidents seriously and a failure to act with integrity in this context negatively affected the reputation of the profession.